The makers of “Intouchables” are back in theaters with a new social comedy-drama. But should you go see “A Difficult Year” in the cinema? The critics’ opinion.
The directors of Intouchables, Le Sens de la Fête or Hors norm are returning to the cinema. Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache released their latest film, A Difficult Year, this Wednesday, October 18, 2023. Carried by Pio Marmaï and Jonathan Cohen, the feature film follows two over-indebted friends who find themselves, out of interest, joining the ecological activist community .
However, this social comedy has generally won over the critics, who are however not unanimous on the quality of the feature film since the film obtains a rating of 3.1/5 on Allociné. Among those won over, many cite the filmmaker duo’s “gift for amusing and questioning” (20 minutes) or the fact that it is a “topical” film (Elle).
For franceinfo culture, A Difficult Year “confirms the constancy of Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache as keen observers and directors of their time” when Le Figaro salutes “the comedy of over-indebtedness”.
La Voix du Nord, also won over, however wants to be more measured, ensuring that the “big gap between the two problems” (over-indebtedness and the ecological crisis) “is sometimes acrobatic”. But “the strength of directors is knowing how to move people when necessary”.
This fault is shared by Le Parisien, which believes that we “don’t really know what footing this comedy is on” which “remains no less funny” thanks to the performance of Pio Marmaï and Jonathan Cohen.
The big disappointments, including one of the Télérama journalists (who does not agree with his colleague), denounced “a message that is at least off the mark” on the political dimension of this entertainment.
An opinion shared by Les fiches du cinéma, which denounces “major weaknesses in the writing”, while Libération denounces “extremely conformist adventures.” It’s now up to the public to decide.
